Northern BIN Steer Project

The joint Northern BIN Steer Project between Australian Brahman Breeders’ Association (ABBA), Droughtmasters Stud Breeders Society (DSBS) and a consortium of Santa Gertrudis Breeders with funding assistance from the Meat & Livestock Australia Donor started in 2015 and is now in its nineth year.  The project purchases the steers from the Repronomics project from Spyglass and Brian Pastures just after weaning and Background them on industry properties. The Northern BIN Steer Project is providing growth and carcase data which is assisting in the availability of genomically enhanced EBVs through the “Single Step” analysis and a future Tropical crossbred analysis. This is possible as the Brahman and Droughtmaster steers (from Spyglass and Brian Pastures) and Santa Gertrudis steers from Brian Pastures have been run together since birth, having only been split during the joining period of their dams in the Repronomics Project.

To date the Northern BIN Steer Project has purchased ~ 3500 steers of which ~1600 are Brahmans by more than 100 different sires. The sires of the steers are either proven sires with a large number of registered progeny (few of which have been performance recorded with BREEDPLAN) or young up and coming bulls.

Data collected on the steers includes 400 day, 600 day weights, carcase scan at 600 day weight and prior to slaughter. Steers are also structurally scored at the scan prior to slaughter. MSA data is collected in the meatworks and a meat sample is taken and sent the meat science lab at the University of New England (UNE) where Shear force and IMF data are collected.